This blog is written by a Pennsylvania blogger about great breweries, great craft and non craft beers, great food, some good health tips and all the fun that goes along with it. If you would like to guest post or have anything you want me to share with others just drop me an email and I'll do my best to include it in the blog where it makes sense.

About Me

Former editor in chief of an award winning publication, avid outdoorsman, love hiking, kayaking, fishing, biking, visiting state parks, published writer, avid drinker, certified bartender, beer rater and I ran a bar tending school, and blogger writing under title of the Man Can Critic

Saturday, July 4, 2015

It's taken some time but here is the synopsis of my trip to Florida and cigar City Brewery. First I had an awesome time in Florida. It was great seeing family and I got to drip some amazing beers and had an all around great time doing everything we did there. Cigar city is fantastic. The tour is around $5 and you get a Cigar City glass and about 2 full beers on the tour. About half a glass of four different beers. We went on a Saturday so we had the pleasure of touring with Bob. He only works on weekends so that is definitely the time to go. He is very informative and a pretty funny guy. The first stop is the tasting room where you get to indulge is some Florida Cracker named after Florida's Rodeo scene. All Cigar City brews take their names from Florida and Tampa's rich history. Next it was off to the canning room where we had some Maduro. There we learned some interesting facts and seen a "Big Ass Fan". I believe that is what it is actually called. Next it was off to the micro lab and time for some Invasion. There we learned about all the testing Cigar City does. Lastly we went back to the tasting room and concluded our tour with some Jai Alai fresh off the fermentor. Jai Alai was my favorite. All in all we tried two flights and the beers on the tour. While there I had Homefront IPA, Strawberry Creamsicle, Bolita Double Brown Ale, Jai Alai White Oak Aged IPA, Key Lime IPA, Cubano-Style Espresso Brown Ale, Caffe Americano Double Stout, Grand Dix, Maduro Brown Ale, and Invasion Pale Ale. Out of all the great beers I had that day Bolita Double Brown Ale was my favorite. All in all this was easily the best brewery trip I have ever had. It was great going to somewhere new having some great beers and sharing that experience with my great family. All of us had a great time and I'm looking forward to going back again. Thanks for reading and as always drink responsibly.

Thursday, June 18, 2015

I just got back from an awesome vacation down to Florida and I am feeling super recharged. While I was down there I got an email from The Beer Connoisseur about a Kick starter campaign they wanted me to write about. So I figured I'd check it out and write about that one today and then do one on Cigar City which I visited when I was down in Florida sometime over the weekend. So first I checked out their Kick starter campaign. It looked pretty interesting and like a decent value. You get a membership, access to the site and discounts at different places. The site is pretty well put together and there seems to be some interesting content. I would like to see more reviews and information. I realize the magazine is still young and with time will increase the numbers of these things. Also the discounts they offer are only to a select few companies none of which are really in my area. I think in time this idea will flourish I just think it is going to take some time for this idea to make it to fruition. I recommend you check out their Kick starter campaign and judge for your self an also check out their website to form your own opinion. Thanks for reading and as always drink responsibly.